Thruway Authority: Federal loan for Tappan Zee replacement could be decided in 30-60 days

Sep. 23, 2013

The Tappan Zee Bridge on Sept. 21. / Peter Carr/The Journal News

Written by

Joseph Spector and Theresa Juva-Brown

Albany Bureau Chief

ALBANY — The state Thruway Authority is hoping to know within 30 to 60 days if it will land a federal loan to help pay for a portion of the $3.9 billion Tappan Zee Bridge, the authority’s executive director said Monday.

The Thruway Authority, owner of the new bridge, is seeking a $1.5 billion loan from the U.S. Department of Transportation. The application process has been prolonged, and the Thruway Authority this month borrowed $700 million to help with short-term financing for the bridge.

Thomas Madison, the Thruway Authority’s executive director, said he’s confident that many of the application hurdles have been overcome and that a decision will be coming shortly.

“We’re sincerely very optimistic. The talks are going very well with the folks in D.C.,” Madison told Gannett’s Albany Bureau. “The timeframes are now coming more clearly into focus. We think 30 to 60 days we should be in a place where we have some real certainty, and we are able to finalize our financial plan.”

The U.S. Department of Transportation said the agency continues to review the application, adding that loan applications of more than $1 billion require two independent financial analyses.

It’s likely the Thruway Authority will get a federal loan from the Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act program, but the final amount is anyone’s guess, transportation policy experts say.

“The $1.5 billion (request) always struck me as overly optimistic, given all the demand for TIFIA loans. I’d be surprised if they got half that,” Robert Poole, director of transportation policy for the Reason Foundation, a self-described libertarian public policy group, told The Journal News.

Congress last year approved an eight-fold funding increase to TIFIA, prompting huge demand from cash-strapped local governments nationwide. The Tappan Zee project is one of the largest loan requests.

Standard & Poor’s recently indicated that the Thruway is hoping to finalize its financial plan next month, dealing with not only how to pay for the bridge but also the authority’s strategy to deal with growing costs to run the nearly 500-mile Thruway and its canal system. The Thruway hasn’t detailed the new toll structure for the bridge.

The TIFIA loan is important, Thruway officials have said. The state would get a lower interest rate than if it borrowed the money itself for the project. Madison said the Thruway Authority would finance the bridge if the federal loan didn’t come through.